March Madness Analysis: Top 6 Title Contenders

The 2024 NCAA Tournament bracket with tip times, locations, and TV channels! 🔥🏀🔥 pic.twitter.com/LEN2DoXs8p

— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) March 18, 2024

Kansas entered the season as the favorite to win the national title. However, Jayhawks leading scorer Kevin McCullar announced via social media that he will be unable to play in the tournament.

When looking at our odds of winning March Madness, UConn (+375), Houston (+600) and Purdue (+700) lead the way in the odds to win the national title.

Let’s take a look at some of the top contenders to win the title.

UConn Eyeing Repeat

With the way the regular season played out, this could be a tough tournament to handicap.

Here’s a look at the six teams with the top odds to win it all in the 2024 March Madness bracket according to the BetUS sportsbook.

1. UConn Huskies

• Record: 31-3
• Seed: No. 1 in East
• Odds to Win March Madness: +375
• Odds to Reach the Final Four: Even
• Odds to Make the Regional Final: -160

Toughest Potential Matchup: Iowa State. If the Cyclones play like they did in the Big 12 tournament final, they can beat just about anybody.

UConn doesn’t appear to have a weakness with All-American point guard Tristen Newton leading the way. Alex Karaban and Cam Spencer are able to light it up from the perimeter while sophomore center Donovan Clingan and freshman Stephon Castle are on the radar of NBA scouts.

2. Houston Cougars

• Record: 30-4
• Seed: No. 1 in South
• Odds to Win March Madness: +600
• Odds to Reach the Final Four: +150
• Odds to Make the Regional Final: -135

Toughest Potential Matchup: Kentucky. If the Kentucky freshmen don’t play like first-year players, the Wildcats are a very dangerous team and could make life difficult for the top-seeded Cougars.

Houston was completely shut down in the Big 12 title game and that is a concern as is the fact that the top three scorers are 6-foot-1, 6-1 and 6-3. How will the Cougars hold up against a team that can throw the ball into the low post?

3. Purdue Boilermakers

• Record: 29-4
• Seed: No. 1 in Midwest
• Odds to Win March Madness: +700
• Odds to Reach the Final Four: +175
• Odds to Make the Regional Final: -115

Toughest Potential Matchup: Tennessee. Can Purdue slow down Tennessee’s Dalton Knecht and deal with the pressure of being one of the pre-tournament favorites according to the Las Vegas odds?

Purdue’s biggest weakness could be recent history. The Boilermakers were on the wrong side of history with a loss to No. 16 seed Fairleigh Dickinson in the first round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament. Failure to win the Big Ten tournament title only raised more questions going into the NCAAs.

If an opponent can keep National Player of the Year front-runner Zach Edey from making regular trips to the foul line, do the Boilermakers have a Plan B? An injury to Braden Smith is a concern as well.

✅: The Sporting News
✅: Associated Press
✅: NABC
❔: USBWA

Zach Edey named first-team All-American for the third time this season! One more to go! pic.twitter.com/z9cZlYLfOe

— Purdue Men’s Basketball (@BoilerBall) March 20, 2024

4. Arizona Wildcats

• Record: 25-8
• Seed: No. 2 in West
• Odds to Win March Madness: +1200
• Odds to Reach the Final Four: +250
• Odds to Make the Regional Final: Even

Toughest Potential Matchup: North Carolina. A matchup between the Wildcats and the Tar Heels with a spot in the Final Four at stake would be must-see TV.

The Wildcats were -14 in points in the paint in the Pac-12 tournament loss to Oregon and teams will be watching tape of that game to try to slow down one of the top-scoring teams in the country.

5. North Carolina Tar Heels

• Record: 27-7
• Seed: No. 1 in West
• Odds to Win March Madness: +1400
• Odds to Reach the Final Four: +300
• Odds to Make the Regional Final: +185

Toughest Potential Matchup: Arizona is one of the top offensive teams in the country and that could pose some issues for a North Carolina team that has put itself in trouble with scoring droughts at times this season.

Armando Bacot and R.J. Davis were stars of a North Carolina team that played in the 2022 national championship game. The addition of transfers Cormac Ryan and Harrison Ingram and the arrival of freshman guard Elliot Cadeau gives North Carolina a strong starting lineup. A lack of production off the bench could be an issue.

Since Carolina’s only home loss to Clemson on Feb. 6th, where he went 0/6, Cormac Ryan is 26/57 (45.6%) from beyond the arc, including 9/16 (56.3%) in his last three games.

Today, he’s hit 3/4 (75%).

That’s what you call locked in. 🔐 pic.twitter.com/XspUFEOQbq

— PTTP: Point to the Passer (@PointPasserPod) March 14, 2024

6. Tennessee Volunteers

• Record: 24-8
• Seed: No. 2 in Midwest
• Odds to Win March Madness: +1600
• Odds to Reach the Final Four: +325
• Odds to Make the Regional Final: N/A

Toughest Potential Matchup: Creighton. Before Tennessee can think about matching up with Edey and Purdue in the Elite Eight, the Volunteers may need to contend with a veteran Creighton team with size and perimeter scoring.

Dalton Knecht has been a revelation since transferring in from Northern Colorado. There have been struggles from time to time to find other scorers for the Volunteers. That was an issue in the SEC tournament loss to Mississippi State when three starters combined to go 3-for-17 from the field as Tennessee could not overcome a tough shooting effort from Knecht.

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